Emails to the webmasters

[Alex]

Email I received yesterday, does anyone know offhand?

Hello. I'm trying to find out the highest elevation on I-95. I was told it was in Maine. Can you shed some light on this for me? Thank you.Jim

[NE2]

If it's in Maine (which seems likely), it's about 720 feet between Ludlow and Smyrna Mills.

[Alex]

Maybe one of our California members has seen this map?

Hi,

I was at the gas station in Nyack, California and saw a wonderful map that illustrated where the current remains of Highway 40 were.  It showed it from Sacramento to Reno.  Is such a map available to purchase?

Thanks,

Steve

[Alex]

Any of our Vermont members, or those familiar with the area have an idea?

Vermont people-

We are planning a bike trip ending in Burlington and we are planning to take Rt.2 Roosevelt Highway from the north down into Burlington.  Is this route bike friendly?

Thanks.

Lee N

[Zeffy]

While I've never touched Vermont, browsing over GMSV, it looks like a lot of US 2 has a wide enough shoulder for bike usage, at least until Montpelier.

In any case - I wouldn't doubt Froggie being able to answer this question. 

[froggie]

Most of US 2 is fairly bike friendly, though there are sections that lack shoulders, and if they're coming from the north, as soon as they cross over from Grand Isle, it's a limited-access section...I'm not sure what the bike accommodation is for those coming from Grand Isle on bike.

But if they're doing this trip soon and over a weekend, the Island Line Bike Ferry runs until October 13.  It's located here, and ties into a rail-trail that'll bring them right down into downtown Burlington at the waterfront.

[Alex]

Thanks Froggie, I relayed your response!

[Alex]

Jake, Zeffy, anyone else have an idea?

Hello,

I'm making a road sign for a film, something like the attached [see below] but only featuring the city of Chicago and the distance to it. How would I go about figuring out the size of a sign like that without actually measuring one on a highway? Thank you.

Brandon

[Zmapper]

If sign specs aren't available, then park on the shoulder and measure it. Shouldn't take more than a few minutes at most.

The best strategy to not stand out would be to use whomever has the most "worklike" vehicle that would at a passing glance look like it belonged to a DOT inspector. Wear a florescent safety vest so other drivers or passing law enforcement think you are merely at work, and you shouldn't raise any red flags.

[Zeffy]

Jake, Zeffy, anyone else have an idea?

Hello,

I'm making a road sign for a film, something like the attached [see below] but only featuring the city of Chicago and the distance to it. How would I go about figuring out the size of a sign like that without actually measuring one on a highway? Thank you.

Brandon

Using my ghetto methods in assuming the UC letter height is 16", I got the measurements of 309" x 67" (estimated, and probably wrong).

[froggie]

If he really wants to get into the weeds, using MnDOT standard.  Relevant pages would be 3-8, 3-12, and Example #7 starting on page 4-45, modified of course for only one city instead of three.  It should be noted that MnDOT rounds overall sign dimensions to the nearest 6", and adjusts spacing accordingly.

For a single-city distance sign, they would use an overall sign height of 36"...2" border on each side, 13.333" city name and numerals, and 9.333" spacing between the city name/numerals and the borders on the top and bottom sides.

[Scott5114]

It would be fairly easy to use the MUTCD, chapter 2D, to derive the height of the sign based on the message. Use the recommended height of the text, add margins, add border, done.

[Alex]

Does anyone know off-hand?

I read on your website that shows I-19, in Nogales, ends at about the West Street intersection near downtown. That is the point where it downgrades from freeway standards. I have also seen other sources that says it continues as a surface street to the intersection of Sonoita Avenue and Crawford Street.
  I have 2 questions.  1) I read somewhere, I believe it was on your site, that an unsigned state highway connects the end of I-19 to Grand Avenue. If so, does it have a number, but it just isn't posted?  2) If it does end at Crawford Street, it seems kind of silly that it would end just 2 blocks away from Grand Avenue, which is I-19 Business Loop.
  I would appreciate any information you can give me on this subject.

[froggie]

According to ADOT's Route Log, I-19 begins at the Crawford St/Grand Ave intersection, and BL-19 extends down Grand Ave to the Mexico border.

[Alex]

Probably little chance of finding out what this was, but thought I'd share it with the board to see if anyone has any insight.

OK back in, I'm gonna guess early 90s.
I went to visit a buddy in Tuscon. So instead of taking the normal 1-40 route to visit my family back East, I took the 1-10 to 1-20 route to I-40.
I think it must have been very early morning when I went thru El Paso as the sun rose.
Couldnt hold it till a rest stop or exit with a truck stop so I had to get off the freeway and look for a spot.
Of course this was maybe 25 years ago. Maybe as late as 1988. So the exits could have changed.

I think it was before I got on 1-20, but cant be 100% sure.

The exit was empty, I'm fairly certain. I don't remember any buildings or anything there. Just sandy, rocky hills.
I think I turned to the right went to the first side road. Made another right and found a ruined building.
It was on a hill slope, perhaps small, but I wasn't on flat land. I wasn't too far from the freeway. Maybe a minute or 2 from the highway.

The ruin looked old. I saw no signs marking it. It wasn't complete, just part of the shell.
For sure it wasn't modern. ( I did spot some modern ruins near a closed gas station on google maps, for certain that's not what I'm talking about).
I seem to remember bricks. maybe a couple feet tall. Dont think any walls were complete but some may have been, or been taller.

I don't know what made me think it was an old bank. Perhaps it had a cornice or columns. Maybe some concrete molding or facade.
I thought at the time, I bet this was the start to a town that never took off. Probably cause it had no spring or something.

I went thru google maps and couldnt find it.

- Erick W

[Alex]

It is rare that I get many site related emails anymore, but over the last couple of weeks I received a number of them. 
I don't know enough about Washington roads to answer this one without digging. Figured it would just be easier to ask on his behalf here:

I'm from Eastern WA in Seattle to attend UW and of all the highway regions in Greater Seattle the Southern Regions confuse me the most.
IF possible, would you know WHEN Route 509 was built? Is it Freeway era or does its roadbed date well before this ?
I know thanks to vintage library materials of many of the PreWW2 southern routes and had not suspected that 509s route may be older than the Freeway era.
I do have your 1956 map, thank you, now to study, and also Wikipedia entries too.
Lastly, is 509 also informally called the West Seattle Freeway?

[ErmineNotyours]

It is rare that I get many site related emails anymore, but over the last couple of weeks I received a number of them. 
I don't know enough about Washington roads to answer this one without digging. Figured it would just be easier to ask on his behalf here:

I'm from Eastern WA in Seattle to attend UW and of all the highway regions in Greater Seattle the Southern Regions confuse me the most.
IF possible, would you know WHEN Route 509 was built? Is it Freeway era or does its roadbed date well before this ?
I know thanks to vintage library materials of many of the PreWW2 southern routes and had not suspected that 509s route may be older than the Freeway era.
I do have your 1956 map, thank you, now to study, and also Wikipedia entries too.
Lastly, is 509 also informally called the West Seattle Freeway?

Everything You've Ever Wanted To Know About SR 509 But Were Too Afraid To Ask: https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=22803.0

Edit to add: http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/hwysofwastate/sr509.html  (Watch out for pop-ups.)

[Alex]

I'm a reporter for KJZZ News, which is the NPR member station for the Phoenix metropolitan area. Our radio station has a reporting project going on called Q&AZ where listeners submit questions for reporters to answer. I'm reaching out to you to see if you have the answer to this specific question.

Going northbound on Arizona State Route 51, there's an exit 5 leading to Glendale/Lincoln, and right after is exit 7 to Northern--but there's no exit 6. One of our listeners wants to know (and now I want to know) why this is. I figured AA Roads does a lot of research on these topics, and if you're willing/available, I'd love to have an interview with someone about this.

Normally I would ask Kevin, but I haven't talked with him a long time and not sure if Andy could relay the question to him in time.

So if anyone has any insight, please post here about it! I will relay any responses to her.
She also asked about being interviewed for it, so pm me if you are interested in that as well and I will follow up.

[J N Winkler]

I'm not sure I would want to be interviewed on TV about this, as I'm not local, but I'm pretty sure there is no Exit 6 because SR 51 has distance-based exit numbering and the gap between Glendale/Lincoln and Northern is longer than one mile.  SR 51 just looks like it has sequential numbering because it has exits at mile spacing along most of its length.

[CtrlAltDel]

I'm not sure I would want to be interviewed on TV about this, as I'm not local, but I'm pretty sure there is no Exit 6 because SR 51 has distance-based exit numbering and the gap between Glendale/Lincoln and Northern is longer than one mile.  SR 51 just looks like it has sequential numbering because it has exits at mile spacing along most of its length.

That was my thought as well, and it is close, but there's a bit of skew in the numbers, as you can see. I'm wondering if that single entrance ramp at 26th Street counts internally as exit 6.

[kphoger]

Glendale Avenue's passing under SR 51 is between mile-marker 5 and mile-marker 6.  Therefore, its exit number is 5.

It's awfully close, but Northern Avenue's passing under SR 51 is between mile-marker 7 and mile-marker 8.  Therefore, its exit number is 7.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/Z2CjDJBvpNAiDmTK6

[CtrlAltDel]

Glendale Avenue's passing under SR 51 is between mile-marker 5 and mile-marker 6.  Therefore, its exit number is 5.

It's awfully close, but Northern Avenue's passing under SR 51 is between mile-marker 7 and mile-marker 8.  Therefore, its exit number is 7.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/Z2CjDJBvpNAiDmTK6

Interesting. That would mean that the mileages in the Wikipedia are off for some reason.

[vdeane]

Glendale Avenue's passing under SR 51 is between mile-marker 5 and mile-marker 6.  Therefore, its exit number is 5.

It's awfully close, but Northern Avenue's passing under SR 51 is between mile-marker 7 and mile-marker 8.  Therefore, its exit number is 7.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/Z2CjDJBvpNAiDmTK6

Interesting. That would mean that the mileages in the Wikipedia are off for some reason.

It looks like Wikipedia mile 0 is where the mainline splits from I-10, while posted mile 0 is where it splits from the ramp to AZ 202.

[Alex]

I received this email that I am suspecting is a scam, because the specific image in question never was added to the site, and that the requirements indicate that I must provide a free link to an online casino website in the credit for its use (simply removing the photo is not sufficient).

The page has a 2012 photo of the Reno arch on it, which is near the location of the casino in the imgur link below.

Dear owner of aaroads.com/nevada/reno-sparks/,

I represent the Intellectual Property division. We have identified an image belonging to our client on your website.

Image Details:

Code Select Expand

https://i.imgur.com/wJViRa5.jpg
Location of Usage: Reno-Sparks page

We require that you credit our client Online Casino for this image. Please add a direct and clickable hyperlink to

Code Select Expand

https://www.bestonlinecasino.bet/zodiac-casino/
either beneath the image or in the footer of the page. This must be completed within the next five business days.

Please understand the seriousness of this request. Simply removing the image will not suffice. If you do not comply within the given timeframe, we will have to start legal proceedings under case No. 48329, following the DMCA Section 512(c) guidelines.

For historical image usage, you can check the Wayback Machine at web.archive.org.

This is an official notice. We value your prompt response and cooperation. Please correspond in English.

And the email is from a lady listed on a website from a Boston legal group. I looked up the email headers, and the IP address (162.0.209.82) from the email sender appears to be Los Angeles. So I am thinking this email is spoofing this lady in order to extort a free incoming link.

[1995hoo]

Almost certainly a scam, given that they don't tell you whose IP division, given the use of a case number near the end, and given the lack of reference to where this supposed case is pending. Courts don't assign case numbers until the plaintiff files the case-initiating documents (typically a summons and complaint, though the exact terminology may vary from state to state).